Citation

Faria A, Sousa T, Vaz JR, Gabriel R, Gama J, Stergiou N. J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci. 2024; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Gerontological Society of America)

DOI

10.1093/gerona/glae109

PMID

38666361

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Physical decline due to aging has been associated with the risk of falls. Minimum toe clearance (MTC) is a gait parameter that might play a role in the mechanism of tripping and falling. However, it is unclear if there are any sex-related effects regarding MTC as people age. The present study investigated if there are sex-related differences in MTC in older active adults.

METHODS: Twenty-three females and 23 males (F: 65.5 ± 4.8 yrs; M: 61.9 ± 5.2 yrs) walked on a treadmill at a preferred walking speed, while kinematic data were obtained at a sampling frequency of 100 Hz and up-sampled to 120 and 240Hz. MTC was calculated from the kinematics data and evaluated concerning its magnitude (i.e., MTC and MTC/leg length), the time between left/right MTC (i.e., T-MTC), amount of variability (i.e., CV and CVm), and temporal structure of variability i.e., the complexity of the time series (i.e., MTC α, T-MTC α).

RESULTS: No sex effects were found for MTC/leg length, for the amount of variability (i.e., CV and CVm), and for the complexity of the time series (MTC α, T-MTC α). However, females exhibited significantly lower MTC and T-MTC after adjusting for walking speed, mass, and age as covariates.

CONCLUSIONS: The reduced MTC in females suggests a potential sex-related disparity in the risk of tripping and falling among active older adults.

Language: en

Keywords

balance; falls; gait; tripping; variability